The locks should open by April as scheduled despite leakage problems

LONDON—The Panama Canal’s new, larger locks should open by April as scheduled despite leakage problems, the waterway’s administrator said, but he wants to see steel reinforcements installed before giving a final completion date.

The expanded canal, which is getting its first major makeover in 100 years, will be able to handle ships three times as big as today. The project has set off a flurry of port-expansion works in Panama, elsewhere in the Caribbean and on the U.S. East Coast to accommodate the larger vessels.